The gates here on the base are what you see first: oriental style manned by Korean security along with Security Forces. Since so many people walk here there is a large parking lot out by the gate that people will park their cars at inside the gate and simply walk out. There is a 10pm curfew for the first two weeks while you are here regardless of rank, allowing you the chance to fully in-process through your initial briefings of the unique mission here.
Aragon told us about a really neat restaurant in the middle of Songtan, but gave us a round about tour of the Songtan Entertainment District (SED). Incredible sight: stores crammed next to each other all selling the same thing (make-up, leather goods, trophy shops, food markets). It's amazing how these businesses even survive when you have five competitors right next to you selling you the same thing. The hilarious part though, is that the owners or workers of these shops just sit outside their stores with other people playing games, eating or talking; stark contrast to American isolation where you never leave your store or associate with your competition.
We drove, or better to say weaved through the streets having no idea how you even navigate them. No street signs, rare traffic lights, people driving anyway as they seem fit and parking; well it's wherever you want. The cars are hilarious: Hyundai's that I have never heard of but are the same style are some American ones, Kia's that have random numbers attached to them instead of model names, and other brands of cars that I seriously have no idea what the designers were thinking ("Hey, we should make this a hatchback / truck / SUV / car that looks like a cheetah.") Hilarious. The signs and power lines are so congested that you wonder how anyone can see where a certain store is since it's overwhelmed by a hundred of its friends lobbying for the same line of sight. We drove around laughing and joking as the girls commented on why stores sold toilets only, why busses parked in the middle of the road, and what all these signs must mean.
We eventually made it to a dual store: one full of Korean candy, and the other of the Hibachi style restaurant where they serve Galbi (gal-bee) which is a cooked chicken/veggies that you dip into cheese. Winner! The restaurants here have very little items that are discardable: all cups are stainless steel and glass and kept chilled, chopsticks are stainless steel, etc. Aragon taught the girls and me how to appropriately hold chopsticks which they nailed down really well. I didn't realize I had been holding them wrong all these years!
The items included in the Galbi were all raw, cooked in front of you, and surrounded by a ring of melted cheese. Super fun time.
The items included in the Galbi were all raw, cooked in front of you, and surrounded by a ring of melted cheese. Super fun time.
To enhance the cultural experience, Aragon grabbed some fruit that looked like pineapple but was actually pickled Korean radish which was absolutely hideous to the taste. He made it up by getting us Korean Cider (Sprite knock-off) that is way better that any American soda; natural sugar, little carbonation, very good. The girls were funny when they said - "we don't drink much soda in our family," a comment that made Aragon laugh about how "healthy" we were. Food was amazing.
Lastly, we then went to the Korean candy store next door. They had a German section which brandished the Kinder Eggs - a forbidden item in America that Heather loves. Aragon is like the grandparent that you don't want, but yet can't deny, since he taunts you to let your kids have anything they want. He instigated the kids into buying some candy, which I also discover the Korean version of Mamba's that surprisingly is better than American Mamba's. He did the same thing the next night when we ventured out and dropped 20000 won ($20 bucks) getting Korean looking stuffed animals out of a claw vending machine - which actually worked. It was a huge gamble and risk to win them, but we did!
Super fun memory. We returned back before 10pm as to not be arrested, grateful for a guide who gave us a wondering introduction to such a fun place.
-Kevin
Oh, what fun!! My friend who served her mission just south of Seoul told me about that mean with the ring of cheese around it. You could see her salivating! It sounds really good! And all those candy items. What fun!
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